Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Broncos country tonight once again after a Colorado Rockies game.
We also had another day of padded training camp practice
for the Denver Broncos today, but of a cloudier, more
temperate days that was very nice to enjoy. Fortunately, they
had the guys on the far field and it was.
Speaker 2 (00:18):
A run heavy, trench.
Speaker 1 (00:20):
Play heavy day, so it was a little hard to
get a good view on everything that was happening. But
I still think we have some exciting notes to go
over there from really what happened over the past couple
of days. The rain delay with the Rockies last night
limited how much we were able to dive into all
the training camp covered from yesterday and all the big
(00:40):
Broncos news from yesterday, and I think that's really a
great spot to start for tonight. The more somber news,
of course, is the Drew Sanders and Alex Singleton updates.
Drew Sanders on Saturday was carted off the field from
Broncos training camp practice, and on Monday we learned from
(01:04):
Sean Payton that it was an injury of his foot ligament,
some ligament in his foot, and he's expected to be
out four to six weeks as he has surgery and
recovers from that. And that's really disappointing because he really
I think you could argue maybe more than anyone on
the roster. Definitely, I think anyone more in that position
(01:26):
group of linebacker needs these developmental reps. He's only spent
one full season of his career, you know, at linebacker.
He's either been an edge or had his off season
robbed from him due to injury, or you know, bounce
between positions. He's never had a full year outside of
(01:48):
his last year at Arkansas, he hasn't had a full
year at linebacker. And that's really what's holding him up
right now. His ability is immense. You know, there's no
doubt about his athletic talent or you know, really any
part of.
Speaker 2 (02:06):
The tools he has.
Speaker 1 (02:07):
It's all about his instincts and his feel for the position,
which is understandably behind considering how little he's actually gotten
to play it. And once you get into the season,
I highlighted this last night too, but once you get
into the season, they're not looking to give you developmental reps.
Speaker 2 (02:24):
You know, it's time to try and figure out.
Speaker 1 (02:26):
How to win games every week right now, And of
course you know that's still an element of right now,
but right now there is a little more wiggle room
and a little more opportunity for development and patients for
learning and growth. And that's what Drew Sanders needs if
he's ever going to hit his stride.
Speaker 2 (02:42):
And you know, last year, obviously it was a more.
Speaker 1 (02:45):
Serious injury with the achilles, but last year he had
his off season robbed from him. And this year it's
not his whole off season, but a large hunk of
his off season is now out the window.
Speaker 2 (02:58):
And I think it's some practice time he really could
have used.
Speaker 1 (03:02):
Now, this of course opens up massive opportunities for several
other linebackers on the roster. Oh the other updates, Sorry,
Alex Singleton at the end of Monday's practice left early,
about thirty minutes maybe two an hour early, holding his
hand and it came out he has broken his thumb.
(03:24):
He should be back about eight days from now, I
believe is the expectation. But still during that time, this
is an immense opportunity for the other linebackers on the roster.
Justin Stern not right and now is you know, the
clear next man up. You know, if only Singleton was out,
(03:44):
maybe he's jocking with Drew Sanders there, but with both
those guys being out Singleton and Standers, it's stern On
stepping back into the lineup and you know, getting to
show his stuff. And also you're getting to see more
reps from the udfas you know, they're getting more of
an opportunity to shine now that being carrying Red and JB. Brown,
(04:08):
you know and read I think is someone they really liked,
just seeing how much run he's getting and you know,
he he so far, he seems to be holding up. Okay,
I don't know if he'll ultimately make the roster or
you know, anything like that, but I think he's probably
got the leg up on JB. Brown for a practice
squad spot, and who knows, if there's a hold up
(04:30):
with Drew Sanders or you know, Alex Singleton or both,
it definitely opens the door for Red or you know,
maybe even Brown to make the final roster. So it's
going to be very interesting to see what everyone does
with their opportunities. And then of course Lavell Bailey, you know,
Sirnod's I think that the heavy favorite to I guess
(04:51):
be the third linebacker in the room for as long
as Drew Sanders is out maybe even after but Leavel
Bailey's gonna push for that role. You know, he he
was on the team last year. He's a strong linebacker.
I think he's looked good all throughout camp. He's hat
a very good camp. So he's absolutely going to push
for those top rotational or depth snaps and roll on
(05:15):
this on this defense. So definitely keep your eyes on
Lavelle Bailey. The other big news, of course, was the
Cortland sudden extension, which I just state it's a slam
dunk by this Denver Broncos front office and another one
in a long line of them. You know, I think
to find the last bad contract this front office signed,
(05:36):
you have to go back to like Randy Gregory or
Russell Wilson. Josh Reynolds didn't work out last year. But
you know how much of that is the weird shotgun
Willie's incident that really was unforeseeable. You know, Reynolds wasn't
a guy with off field problems that would lead you
to believe something like that was on the table. Yeah,
(06:00):
a situation like that is always fairly unpredictable, but you know,
Reynolds wasn't a guy that you even think might be
some level of distraction away from the field, and so
to go through that, I just I don't know how
much you can really blame the front office for that situation.
And it also wasn't a large contract. They're already you know,
(06:21):
they've already dealt with whatever cap fallout came from it.
Speaker 2 (06:25):
It isn't a big deal.
Speaker 1 (06:27):
But like that, and then it's like Randy Gregory Russell Wilson,
you know, in the last two off seasons twenty twenty three,
twenty four. We'll see how twenty twenty five plays out,
but there's really only that one blunder of Josh Reynolds,
and again it's it's a funky one.
Speaker 2 (06:43):
So I think you love to see that.
Speaker 1 (06:46):
And again the Corland sudden extension falls right in line
with that level of true GMing. They've protected themselves well
with this deal. You know, any signing has the potential
to go wrong, right, we don't know the future and
how that's going to play out. I think largely how
we judge contracts isn't you know, did it work out
(07:08):
or not? But and don't get me wrong, that's large
part of it, but also is the process of it good,
and this is another one where the process is good.
If Sutton things go wrong with Sutton and then you
know he is about to hit thirty let's see, he
starts really dropping off. Based on Mike Cliss's report that
of the forty one million dollars on this deal, now
it's twenty three million a year for four years. Of
(07:30):
the forty one million guaranteed on this deal, most of
it or not most of it, but seventeen million of
that is being oh shoot, sorry, fourteen million of that,
excuse me, is being moved into this first year or
not even of the extension, but this upcoming season twenty
twenty five, so before the extension even kicks in, which
(07:53):
would leave just twenty seven million left on a deal
where Sutton's probably making twenty three million a year. That's
probably backloaded, but that means the overwhelming majority of those
guarantees are going to be off that contract by the
end of twenty twenty six. At that point, the Broncos
(08:13):
can pretty easily move off him, and there might be
a minor dead cap hit, but they'll probably ultimately still
be able to enjoy, you know, twenty million dollars in
cap savings or something like that. So if it does
go bad, if he does start really declining, this isn't
a prohibitive deal in any way, shape or form. It's
(08:34):
also not one that should limit the Broncos from seeking
out future options with you know, the flexibility they have
in mind and the fact that Sudden is getting up there. Now,
what this does do is it locks down bo Nix's
most trusted target for the foreseeable future and a reliable
(08:56):
locker room leader. You know, he's out there a training
camp just getting the jugs machine ready and helping loading
balls with all the you know, the random assistance that
that just worked for the Broncos. You know, he's out
there helping setting up the drills and everything. And then
also he's talking with bo Nix after a ton of
their reps together, what do we want to do different
(09:18):
on on this particular route?
Speaker 2 (09:20):
What are you looking for? What am I looking for?
Speaker 1 (09:22):
You know, breaking down I assume you know, we can't
hear them, but you can see them, you know, going
through talking about the route and whatever, you know, talking
with other receivers. I saw him talking with Troy Franklin today,
you know, after one rep where he was kind of
giving him some.
Speaker 2 (09:40):
Advice on some sort of route or you know, who
knows what.
Speaker 1 (09:43):
But again helping that advice, you could tell it was
about whatever they had just done on the rep and
then even to the corners today, one thing that really
stood out to me was him pulling John A. Baron
aside and providing more veteran guidance and leadership. And I
think you know, obviously his contract isn't on the scale
(10:04):
of the Justin Jefferson, but when Justin Jefferson signed his extension,
he talked about how, hey, you know, this is a
bigger responsibility for me now and it represents my role
in the franchise and I have to step up and
do certain things now. And I think you're already seeing
that acknowledgment from Sudden.
Speaker 2 (10:22):
You love to see that.
Speaker 1 (10:24):
And again this is even you know, the team protection, aside,
the off field whatever. It's just a good value, right
this This pays Sudden as the sixteenth highest paid receiver
in terms of average annual value. In terms of guaranteed money,
he's tied for nineteenth, but again factoring in that this
(10:46):
extension only has twenty seven million if you use that
number instead of the forty one which is a more
accurate reflection of the new money he'll be playing on
that actually brings twenty eighth in guaranteed dollar, and then
if you adjust for in cap inflation, it's nineteenth in
terms of what the annual average value is a percentage
(11:08):
of the cap at the time of signing. And this
doesn't mean that Sutton's being treated like a top twenty receiver.
And I think you could debate whether or not he
is because you have to think about all the amazing
receivers on rookie deals. I mean, Lak Neighbors and Brian
Thomas Junior are just finished their rookie years. You could
argue their top ten receivers. Lad McConkey, no doubt, a
(11:30):
top twenty receiver just finished his rookie deal, right, And
that's just from one draft class. There's a lot of
guys on rookie deals that are among the better receivers
in the league. Paying Sudden at this rate isn't treating
him like a top twenty receiver. It's treating him like
a top forty receiver. And I just think it's so
hard to argue that Sudden isn't going to be a
(11:53):
quality Number one or number two wide receiver for the
next two seasons. That's really all the Broncos are on
the hook for. If he drops off three years from now,
that's fine. They can move on, free up twenty million
and go their separate ways. All you need is for
him to be a top forty to fifty receiver for
the next two seasons, and I think everyone in Broncos
(12:15):
country probably expects that out of sudden. It just it
seems like an incredibly wise extension again, and I think
that points to the last point I think you want
to pull from this, which is, let's get Zach Allen
and Nick Minito done now before the season starts. Hit
on this last night, but it bears repeating. These guys
(12:38):
are only going to get more expensive. There's a chance
Nick Benito's value drops, certainly, But we're talking about a
player who could barely get on the field as a rookie,
and when he did it was pretty rough. Year two
was the most productive pass rusher for the Broncos on
a person at basis. Year three, most productive pass rusher
for the Broncos overall, and one of the most productive
(13:00):
pass rushers in the league. And now we're going into
year four, one would expect he's going to be an
incredibly dynamic pass rusher. Again, maybe he regresses closer to
that rookie year form, but that's probably a less likely outcome.
Maybe he suffers a devastating injury, that's a less likely
outcome than him either plateauing or even taking another step forward.
(13:22):
And I know people want to see more from him
in the run game, and obviously the defensive line is
helping him get some good pass rush looks. Even still,
you know, like Trey Hendrickson has some flaws. He doesn't
really play the run in his own right. He is
a little bit of a designated pass rusher for the Bengals,
even in his own right in the way they deploy him.
(13:43):
And yet he is going to make thirty thirty five
million dollars. If you are a certain level of productive,
it doesn't matter. You know, you are going to make
that high end level of money. And also your team's
just not going to want to let you go. I
would be very surprised again, unless Benito totally craters that
the bron goes let him walk. You know, teams aren't
letting these quality players walk anymore. Look at DJ Jones.
(14:06):
Everyone thought he was gonna be on He's still around,
and that's a league wide trend. Because the cap is
so high now you can keep everyone you want to keep.
The Broncos are going to want to keep a Nido
and unless again, he really takes a step back, it's
only going to be another strong season of him in
a starting role. And that's the reason he's cheap right now,
(14:28):
is because he only has one season. If he compounds that.
Now he goes, hey, look I've proven it for two
years now and the third year three years back, I
was the best player on a person at basis.
Speaker 2 (14:39):
You just gave me a smaller role. I am that dude.
Speaker 1 (14:42):
You need to pay me thirty thirty five forty million
dollars a year. Right now, it's probably twenty to twenty
five million. And again, maybe playing it out with Benito
saves the Broncos money in the long run. It could,
but it's far more likely it costs them money. There's
way more examples around the WEA looked at Eagles entire
(15:03):
roster of the benefits of doing this thing early, the
signing players early, and the downsides of doing it late.
Look at the Bengals, look at the Cowboys, right, it
just again, sometimes it goes wrong. But also when you
look at the front office and this coaching staff's unwillingness
to fall for the sunk cost fallacy when they've had
(15:25):
a deal go bad, they've moved off it pretty quick.
I just think this organization should have the faith to
make these gambles. And then the Zach Allen one's more simplistic.
I mean, this guy's an unreal player, the keystone of
the defense outside certan one of the four or five
most important players on the roster, maybe even top three
(15:45):
most important players on the roster.
Speaker 2 (15:48):
Just get it done.
Speaker 1 (15:49):
You know, the interior d lineman market is only going
to keep climbing. He's still a little underrated. If he
breaks out and has another all Pro season this year,
that's another guy who could be pushing thirty five to
forty million dollars a year, And at that point you
probably can't afford both. If you get on it now,
maybe the Broncos can manage to keep both, and I
that's just a game changing element for them. Those are
(16:13):
the big Broncos stories of the last couple of days.
But stick around because after the break we will be
getting into the biggest happenings from training camp. Who's shining,
what are those rookies looking like? How's Bo Nick's playing?
Speaker 2 (16:26):
Is John A.
Speaker 1 (16:26):
Barn the future of the defense? All that and more
coming up on Broncos Country Tonight, Training Camp post Rockies
Late Night, Broncos Country to Night. Once again, it's Zach
(16:47):
Seers here tonight as your fill in host. In the
last segment, we win over. Now that we have all
the details of the Drew Sanders Alex Singleton situations, the
Cortland Sutton contract went into the finer details of that.
Make sure you're checking out that on the KOA website,
iHeart Radio app or wherever you listen to podcasts. But
(17:10):
now let's look at the biggest happenings from training camp
over these past couple days. Weren't really able to get
into that yesterday with the Rockies game, so we'll catch
you all up now for starters, I think b Nicks
the past couple of days up and down. Yesterday was
bo Nix's worst day of training camp I've seen so far.
(17:32):
His accuracy just wasn't quite dialed in. He definitely sailed
some passes over some receivers, a deep ball to tap.
Brian in particular sticks out, just didn't quite have it.
I don't know that wasn't quite dialed in yesterday. Today,
I think he looked a lot better on that front,
but had a couple hiccups in terms of just finding
(17:55):
open targets. And now in his defense, I don't think
the targets really were there. But you typically don't want
to see guys scrambling and you know, scrambling for yardage
and training camp just because you're not going to tackle
or even touch the quarterback.
Speaker 2 (18:10):
So those are those are kind of free yards.
Speaker 1 (18:12):
It's not you want to try and work through the
passing game stuff as much as possible rather than bail
out with those scrambles. That's something Russell Wilson would do. Actually,
a lot at Broncos camp is sit back, kind of
pet the ball, hold it, hold it, hold it, and
in a real game at v a sec but he
holds in and he's like, oh, I've actually scrambled for
twenty yards. You know. The bo had a couple of those, which,
(18:35):
again not ideal. Not the end of the world either
on him. I will say he looked incredibly nimble.
Speaker 2 (18:42):
The wheels are are there.
Speaker 1 (18:44):
You know, obviously he was a little beat up last
year with the back issue and everything, so again, great
to just see him moving well and that that's still
a dynamic part of the offense that defenses are going
to have to respect this year. I will say I
think today was overall stronger from Bonnick. I want to
see him go against some other defenses. You know, maybe
(19:04):
we get through the preseason and we're starting to feel
very worried about the Broncos offense just because oh, it's
looked rough through training camp and now it's rough through
the preseason. This defense just looks so elite. I don't
know what the offense is supposed to do with. The
pass rush is consistently winning, the secondary is locking everyone down,
and we know this defense is loaded with talent, so
(19:27):
I'm not I'm assuming it's because of that defensive talent
and not because the offense has some real glaring holes. Now.
Speaker 2 (19:35):
It could be a bit of that.
Speaker 1 (19:36):
Maybe the receivers are struggling to separate where the line
won't hold up.
Speaker 2 (19:39):
But given what we know about even the.
Speaker 1 (19:41):
Receivers last season and the line last season, I don't
think those problems are as severe as it might look
in camp right now simply because they're having to go
up against an elite defense and that applies to Bow
as well. But I think you are still seeing some
promising aspects of Bo in terms of just his master
(20:03):
and control of the offense. A lot of things I
hit on on here on Friday and on Monday was
how much more controlled and intentional he was with his
decisions today. One thing that really stood out to me
was his pre snap operation. And I think just again
seeing these finer details of the position, these more veteran
aspects of these position come into Bo Nicks's game, is.
Speaker 2 (20:29):
Very promising for Broncos Country. Today. Bo was at the line.
Speaker 1 (20:35):
You know, this is in the team period, and he's
running his cadence. He's getting the defense to jump, maybe
not even so much that it would be a penalty,
but enough that he's determining where the pressure is coming from,
what the pressure package is. And then something that I
thought was very key, he's adjusting the protection afterwards. He
(20:56):
might even be audibling the play. You know, we can't
make out the calls, nor do we necessarily know all
the calls in the Seanpaygnon offense from the media angle, but.
Speaker 2 (21:05):
You do hear him.
Speaker 1 (21:08):
Making one, doing the cadence, getting the defense to jump,
recognizing it, pointing it out to the rest of the offense,
and making some sort of verbal adjustment after the fact.
And that's not stuff he was doing with any sort
of regularity last season, or that really any rookie's doing
with any sort of regularity at the quarterback position. If
(21:32):
he can get that element down of this complex offense
in year two, again, it's just that the sky could
be tremendously high for this offense, and Nix's a lot
of that. The receiving corps also is starting to get
me very excited. I think a lot of people in
Bronco's country wanted to see them do a little bit
more at receiver add you know, maybe a first round
(21:56):
pick at the position, or make it even more serious
investment than what they ultimately wound up doing.
Speaker 2 (22:04):
That said, I think this receiver group looks very, very exciting.
Speaker 1 (22:09):
Of course, there's Sudden leading the way, but the receivers
behind him have really really impressed me. All Camplong, I
think Marvin Mims is having an impressive camp. He's lining
up all over the place, which I think is really
important because one thing that hasn't been talked about enough
this offseason is so much of Marvin Mims' breakout last
season came from the slot. He struggled early on in
(22:33):
the year when they were asking him to do a
lot more of the outside stuff. Once they moved him
into the slot, he finally caught his stride that and
they also peared down their asks of him. They really
simplified things. It was a lot more you know, gadgety
stuff as some designed touches for Marvin Mims. Which, hey,
if that's what he is in the offense, that's fine,
(22:54):
you can find a role for that. But one would
hope he can develop past that and you can keep
that arrow in your quiver. But he can also be
a well rounded, you know, every down receiver. On top
of that, in training camp, you are seeing signs of that,
not only in terms of his alignment and him you know,
being moved around the offense more, but in terms of
(23:15):
what he's being asked to do his routes. He's running
a more diverse assortment of routes. He's running more complex
routes instead of just you know, the bubbles and smoke screens.
And end rounds we saw so much of last year
and those are still there, but you're seeing again a
more diverse deployment of Marvin Mims and that's huge because
(23:37):
it'll keep defenses honest and everyone knows how dynamic Marvin
Mims can be. You know, he'd be at a couple
massive field flipping deep touchdowns last year. And then also
just as a ball carrier, you know, a multiple time
All Pro pund returner for a reason.
Speaker 2 (23:53):
The thing is just how can we.
Speaker 1 (23:57):
Find a way, you know, if you're a Lebronco coaching staff,
how can we find a way to get this guy
the ball in you know, more standard situations where we
aren't having to drop these gadgety plays for them. And
I really think there's some promising signs for that in
this training camp.
Speaker 2 (24:13):
Valay also, you know, and we.
Speaker 1 (24:16):
Saw a lot of that last year already, but he's
being used in a diverse set of ways. Sudden is
being used in a wide ranging set of ways, and
it's just that way top to bottom with the top
six in this receiver room, you know, and it's not
just the top guys. I think the less established options
(24:38):
are extremely promising in their own right. Trent Sherfield has
kind of been the forgotten man in the receiver room
by so much of Broncos country, and I think Ryan
Edwards has done a great job highlighting this the past
couple of days. He's been an ace on special teams
for them in those elements of practice, but he's also
having some great receiver reps. He's one of the better
(25:01):
blocking receivers on the team right away. We all know
that matters to Sean Payton and probably means he will
have a meaningful offensive role this season.
Speaker 2 (25:09):
And he's had some big wins. You know, during the.
Speaker 1 (25:14):
One on one period he got matched up with jqm
Ran a little hitch and go and torched him, I
mean five to ten plus yards of separation, a waltzed
on into the end zone for a really easy score.
And just all throughout practice he's making plays as a receiver.
I think he looks like a great kind of trusty
(25:36):
veteran option, a floor raising option for the rest of
the room where you have so many unproven younger pieces,
and a lot of them are exciting, but it's a
projection for a lot of these pieces where Trent Sherfield,
even if maybe a lower ceiling is established, a higher
floor has also been established by him, and you know
(25:56):
you can just rely on him to perform a variety
of different roles in the offense and he can come
through for you. I think he is going to surprise
Bronco's country, not only with his impact on special teams
and being a special team's ace, but ultimately being a
really impactful receiver as well.
Speaker 2 (26:17):
Pat Bryant.
Speaker 1 (26:18):
I want to touch on Pat Bryant because I've seen
some heat on Broncos Twitter about Pat Bryant being a
very limited player in terms of his movement from fans
in the bleachers saying he's looking slow out there, and
I just haven't seen that. You know, he tested I
(26:39):
think a four or five forty or something like that.
You know, he's not a speed demon. He's not Marvin
Mims out there or anything. But I also don't think
he looks slow or it looks like speed is a
problem for him. I think one thing that's really impressive
to me with Pat Bryant is he's already a very
(26:59):
vet or in route runner. He's lost his cleats a
couple of times, but his cuts have been incredibly crisp,
well detailed on his routes.
Speaker 2 (27:10):
He's running a.
Speaker 1 (27:13):
He using the word diverse, but a varied route tree,
I guess you'd say. And then also just has great
feel for where to settle in the soft spots of
the defense when he's going up against his zone coverage.
He knows how to create separation no matter the coverage
he's facing. And then you can also really win at
the catch point, you know. I think the crazy thing
(27:35):
is he's having a good camp. I think he might
be wide receiver six because Sherfield's looking amazing. And Troy Franklin,
I mean Troy Franklin has maybe been the best player
at Bronco's training camp this this go around.
Speaker 2 (27:50):
I just he again in one on ones.
Speaker 1 (27:55):
He he absolutely whooped up on Mathis Baron had great
reps against them. Pat Bryant, by the way, had a
great route against Riley Moss, which was impressive to see.
It was a really great day for the receivers, and
you expect that in these one on one drills, but
still it was absolutely something you love to see today,
(28:19):
especially with Franklin. Just he doesn't just look improved, he
looks like a different player. His hands have been nothing
but reliable in camp again. I don't know if I've
seen a single one of his targets fall incomplete. And
he's just a much more physical presence. You notice at
(28:40):
the moment you see him on the field, he looks bigger,
he's more filled out his frame, and it plays on
the field. He's getting by cornerbacks and fighting off physical
coverage a lot easier than he did last year. When
there is traffic at the catchpoint or contact at the catchpoint,
he's able to fight through it in a way he
just was last year. And I keep getting more and
(29:04):
more confident about Troy Franklin because it's not just a
one day thing or a two day thing.
Speaker 2 (29:10):
Every single day I've.
Speaker 1 (29:11):
Been to training camps so far, and from what I've heard,
even the days I haven't been there, Troy Franklin has
been a beast. I would not be surprised at all
just where we stand today. I would not be surprised,
to add all, if Troy Franklin is the number two
receiver on this team in twenty twenty five, and if
(29:32):
you told me that a month ago, I would have
thought you were crazy. I thought Franklin was absolutely the
number six and maybe even going to get cut now.
I don't know if i'd pick him to be the
number two, but I don't think he's that far behind
Mims er Valet. I think all three of those guys
(29:52):
are in a similar tier in terms of likelihood of
who ends up becoming the number two receiver. Now, I
think a wide receiver that is going to be the
number two pass catcher, and maybe even a running back
ends up beating out one of those other receivers. But
between Mims and frank I really don't know. I think
either of them could have such big rules. It's not
(30:13):
just the deep stuff.
Speaker 2 (30:14):
With Franklin. You're seeing him view used in a more
varied set of ways.
Speaker 1 (30:20):
You're seeing him deployed in some ways we saw Marvin
Mims deployed last year. And with his incredible speed and
now having a little more physicality to his body, he's
looked great. R J. Harvey going to running backs now,
I think the running backs have looked strong these past
few days. R J. Harvey's giving Dobbins a run for
his money. I think Dobbin's vision looks amazing. RJ.
Speaker 2 (30:42):
Harvey so explosive.
Speaker 1 (30:44):
And those are just elements you haven't seen from the
Broncos backfield, especially last season. It was really lacking last season.
I think it's going to be back in twenty twenty
five and that's very exciting.
Speaker 2 (30:56):
Sean Payton was gushing about R. J.
Speaker 1 (30:58):
Harvey today, talked about how he's just been fantastic throughout camp,
even said he liked what he'd see from him in
pass protection, which I think is notable because Harvey did
have a pretty visible or I don't know, noticeable pass
protection blunder today where he got blown up by Jonathan Cooper.
But hearing Sean Payton compliment his pass protection skills I
(31:21):
thought was notable because Payton doesn't just throw around compliments easily.
So great to hear that Harvey's impressing on that front
because that's going to be so important to what type
of playing time he gets. And I did have more
offensive notes today, it was harder to make out some
of the coverage stuff. One thing that really did stand
out to me on defense today John A. Baron.
Speaker 2 (31:46):
Really the last two days, John A.
Speaker 1 (31:47):
Barron has been really really great out there at Broncos camp.
I think the physicality he's demonstrated has been so impressive.
He's always around the ball, always making contact. When we're
seeing some of the run plays, he's getting right into
the thick of the mess and he's setting that edge
(32:10):
or helping set the edge, you know, from that corner spot,
and oftentimes you know you're creating a little bit of
a pile up or a traffic jam and helping to
slow down the run for a minimal game gain or
even stop it in the backfield.
Speaker 2 (32:25):
I think you love to see that from a corner,
especially a first round corner.
Speaker 1 (32:31):
You know, he's i think, being an elite player at
that position, a lot of guys aren't necessarily down to
do the dirty work and get their hands dirty stains
more than willing and John A.
Speaker 2 (32:44):
Barron looks cut from the same cloth in that regard.
You're seeing him used all over the defense.
Speaker 1 (32:50):
Wherever he lines up. He looks really natural. I think
his instincts just jump off the field. You see him again,
naturally flowing to the ball all the time, making good
breaks on routes to you know, always be around the
catch point, and he's you know, you're not lighting guys up,
but he's consistently putting himself in position to make a
(33:13):
quick tackle or deliver a big hit. We're not seeing
those at this point in practice. We need to see
how it translates to games when he's actually starting to
hit these guys, but he's consistently putting himself in an
excellent position, the coverage looks great. And then when he's
kind of a similar element to what I was just
highlighting with him being willing to get his nose dirty
(33:36):
against the run. He's doing everything on special teams and
when he is, he looks great there. He's been an
awesome gunner during the special teams periods. So I just
however they deploy him, and I don't know how it'll be.
I think it's probably as the starting nickel. However they
end up deploying them, though, I think you have to
(33:57):
have a lot of confidence in what he can bring
to the defense, even as a rookie, just because of
what he's shown so far. We've got a lot more
Broncos happenings to talk about once we get back here.
You're listening to Broncos Country tonight on KOA
Broncos country tonight once again after a Colorado Rockies game.
We also had another day of padded training camp practice
for the Denver Broncos today, but of a cloudier, more
temperate days that was very nice to enjoy. Fortunately, they
had the guys on the far field and it was.
Speaker 2 (00:18):
A run heavy, trench.
Speaker 1 (00:20):
Play heavy day, so it was a little hard to
get a good view on everything that was happening. But
I still think we have some exciting notes to go
over there from really what happened over the past couple
of days. The rain delay with the Rockies last night
limited how much we were able to dive into all
the training camp covered from yesterday and all the big
(00:40):
Broncos news from yesterday, and I think that's really a
great spot to start for tonight. The more somber news,
of course, is the Drew Sanders and Alex Singleton updates.
Drew Sanders on Saturday was carted off the field from
Broncos training camp practice, and on Monday we learned from
(01:04):
Sean Payton that it was an injury of his foot ligament,
some ligament in his foot, and he's expected to be
out four to six weeks as he has surgery and
recovers from that. And that's really disappointing because he really
I think you could argue maybe more than anyone on
the roster. Definitely, I think anyone more in that position
(01:26):
group of linebacker needs these developmental reps. He's only spent
one full season of his career, you know, at linebacker.
He's either been an edge or had his off season
robbed from him due to injury, or you know, bounce
between positions. He's never had a full year outside of
(01:48):
his last year at Arkansas, he hasn't had a full
year at linebacker. And that's really what's holding him up
right now. His ability is immense. You know, there's no
doubt about his athletic talent or you know, really any
part of.
Speaker 2 (02:06):
The tools he has.
Speaker 1 (02:07):
It's all about his instincts and his feel for the position,
which is understandably behind considering how little he's actually gotten
to play it. And once you get into the season,
I highlighted this last night too, but once you get
into the season, they're not looking to give you developmental reps.
Speaker 2 (02:24):
You know, it's time to try and figure out.
Speaker 1 (02:26):
How to win games every week right now, And of
course you know that's still an element of right now,
but right now there is a little more wiggle room
and a little more opportunity for development and patients for
learning and growth. And that's what Drew Sanders needs if
he's ever going to hit his stride.
Speaker 2 (02:42):
And you know, last year, obviously it was a more.
Speaker 1 (02:45):
Serious injury with the achilles, but last year he had
his off season robbed from him. And this year it's
not his whole off season, but a large hunk of
his off season is now out the window.
Speaker 2 (02:58):
And I think it's some practice time he really could
have used.
Speaker 1 (03:02):
Now, this of course opens up massive opportunities for several
other linebackers on the roster. Oh the other updates, Sorry,
Alex Singleton at the end of Monday's practice left early,
about thirty minutes maybe two an hour early, holding his
hand and it came out he has broken his thumb.
(03:24):
He should be back about eight days from now, I
believe is the expectation. But still during that time, this
is an immense opportunity for the other linebackers on the roster.
Justin Stern not right and now is you know, the
clear next man up. You know, if only Singleton was out,
(03:44):
maybe he's jocking with Drew Sanders there, but with both
those guys being out Singleton and Standers, it's stern On
stepping back into the lineup and you know, getting to
show his stuff. And also you're getting to see more
reps from the udfas you know, they're getting more of
an opportunity to shine now that being carrying Red and JB. Brown,
(04:08):
you know and read I think is someone they really liked,
just seeing how much run he's getting and you know,
he he so far, he seems to be holding up. Okay,
I don't know if he'll ultimately make the roster or
you know, anything like that, but I think he's probably
got the leg up on JB. Brown for a practice
squad spot, and who knows, if there's a hold up
(04:30):
with Drew Sanders or you know, Alex Singleton or both,
it definitely opens the door for Red or you know,
maybe even Brown to make the final roster. So it's
going to be very interesting to see what everyone does
with their opportunities. And then of course Lavell Bailey, you know,
Sirnod's I think that the heavy favorite to I guess
(04:51):
be the third linebacker in the room for as long
as Drew Sanders is out maybe even after but Leavel
Bailey's gonna push for that role. You know, he he
was on the team last year. He's a strong linebacker.
I think he's looked good all throughout camp. He's hat
a very good camp. So he's absolutely going to push
for those top rotational or depth snaps and roll on
(05:15):
this on this defense. So definitely keep your eyes on
Lavelle Bailey. The other big news, of course, was the
Cortland sudden extension, which I just state it's a slam
dunk by this Denver Broncos front office and another one
in a long line of them. You know, I think
to find the last bad contract this front office signed,
(05:36):
you have to go back to like Randy Gregory or
Russell Wilson. Josh Reynolds didn't work out last year. But
you know how much of that is the weird shotgun
Willie's incident that really was unforeseeable. You know, Reynolds wasn't
a guy with off field problems that would lead you
to believe something like that was on the table. Yeah,
(06:00):
a situation like that is always fairly unpredictable, but you know,
Reynolds wasn't a guy that you even think might be
some level of distraction away from the field, and so
to go through that, I just I don't know how
much you can really blame the front office for that situation.
And it also wasn't a large contract. They're already you know,
(06:21):
they've already dealt with whatever cap fallout came from it.
Speaker 2 (06:25):
It isn't a big deal.
Speaker 1 (06:27):
But like that, and then it's like Randy Gregory Russell Wilson,
you know, in the last two off seasons twenty twenty three,
twenty four. We'll see how twenty twenty five plays out,
but there's really only that one blunder of Josh Reynolds,
and again it's it's a funky one.
Speaker 2 (06:43):
So I think you love to see that.
Speaker 1 (06:46):
And again the Corland sudden extension falls right in line
with that level of true GMing. They've protected themselves well
with this deal. You know, any signing has the potential
to go wrong, right, we don't know the future and
how that's going to play out. I think largely how
we judge contracts isn't you know, did it work out
(07:08):
or not? But and don't get me wrong, that's large
part of it, but also is the process of it good,
and this is another one where the process is good.
If Sutton things go wrong with Sutton and then you
know he is about to hit thirty let's see, he
starts really dropping off. Based on Mike Cliss's report that
of the forty one million dollars on this deal, now
it's twenty three million a year for four years. Of
(07:30):
the forty one million guaranteed on this deal, most of
it or not most of it, but seventeen million of
that is being oh shoot, sorry, fourteen million of that,
excuse me, is being moved into this first year or
not even of the extension, but this upcoming season twenty
twenty five, so before the extension even kicks in, which
(07:53):
would leave just twenty seven million left on a deal
where Sutton's probably making twenty three million a year. That's
probably backloaded, but that means the overwhelming majority of those
guarantees are going to be off that contract by the
end of twenty twenty six. At that point, the Broncos
(08:13):
can pretty easily move off him, and there might be
a minor dead cap hit, but they'll probably ultimately still
be able to enjoy, you know, twenty million dollars in
cap savings or something like that. So if it does
go bad, if he does start really declining, this isn't
a prohibitive deal in any way, shape or form. It's
(08:34):
also not one that should limit the Broncos from seeking
out future options with you know, the flexibility they have
in mind and the fact that Sudden is getting up there. Now,
what this does do is it locks down bo Nix's
most trusted target for the foreseeable future and a reliable
(08:56):
locker room leader. You know, he's out there a training
camp just getting the jugs machine ready and helping loading
balls with all the you know, the random assistance that
that just worked for the Broncos. You know, he's out
there helping setting up the drills and everything. And then
also he's talking with bo Nix after a ton of
their reps together, what do we want to do different
(09:18):
on on this particular route?
Speaker 2 (09:20):
What are you looking for? What am I looking for?
Speaker 1 (09:22):
You know, breaking down I assume you know, we can't
hear them, but you can see them, you know, going
through talking about the route and whatever, you know, talking
with other receivers. I saw him talking with Troy Franklin today,
you know, after one rep where he was kind of
giving him some.
Speaker 2 (09:40):
Advice on some sort of route or you know, who
knows what.
Speaker 1 (09:43):
But again helping that advice, you could tell it was
about whatever they had just done on the rep and
then even to the corners today, one thing that really
stood out to me was him pulling John A. Baron
aside and providing more veteran guidance and leadership. And I
think you know, obviously his contract isn't on the scale
(10:04):
of the Justin Jefferson, but when Justin Jefferson signed his extension,
he talked about how, hey, you know, this is a
bigger responsibility for me now and it represents my role
in the franchise and I have to step up and
do certain things now. And I think you're already seeing
that acknowledgment from Sudden.
Speaker 2 (10:22):
You love to see that.
Speaker 1 (10:24):
And again this is even you know, the team protection, aside,
the off field whatever. It's just a good value, right
this This pays Sudden as the sixteenth highest paid receiver
in terms of average annual value. In terms of guaranteed money,
he's tied for nineteenth, but again factoring in that this
(10:46):
extension only has twenty seven million if you use that
number instead of the forty one which is a more
accurate reflection of the new money he'll be playing on
that actually brings twenty eighth in guaranteed dollar, and then
if you adjust for in cap inflation, it's nineteenth in
terms of what the annual average value is a percentage
(11:08):
of the cap at the time of signing. And this
doesn't mean that Sutton's being treated like a top twenty receiver.
And I think you could debate whether or not he
is because you have to think about all the amazing
receivers on rookie deals. I mean, Lak Neighbors and Brian
Thomas Junior are just finished their rookie years. You could
argue their top ten receivers. Lad McConkey, no doubt, a
(11:30):
top twenty receiver just finished his rookie deal, right, And
that's just from one draft class. There's a lot of
guys on rookie deals that are among the better receivers
in the league. Paying Sudden at this rate isn't treating
him like a top twenty receiver. It's treating him like
a top forty receiver. And I just think it's so
hard to argue that Sudden isn't going to be a
(11:53):
quality Number one or number two wide receiver for the
next two seasons. That's really all the Broncos are on
the hook for. If he drops off three years from now,
that's fine. They can move on, free up twenty million
and go their separate ways. All you need is for
him to be a top forty to fifty receiver for
the next two seasons, and I think everyone in Broncos
(12:15):
country probably expects that out of sudden. It just it
seems like an incredibly wise extension again, and I think
that points to the last point I think you want
to pull from this, which is, let's get Zach Allen
and Nick Minito done now before the season starts. Hit
on this last night, but it bears repeating. These guys
(12:38):
are only going to get more expensive. There's a chance
Nick Benito's value drops, certainly, But we're talking about a
player who could barely get on the field as a rookie,
and when he did it was pretty rough. Year two
was the most productive pass rusher for the Broncos on
a person at basis. Year three, most productive pass rusher
for the Broncos overall, and one of the most productive
(13:00):
pass rushers in the league. And now we're going into
year four, one would expect he's going to be an
incredibly dynamic pass rusher. Again, maybe he regresses closer to
that rookie year form, but that's probably a less likely outcome.
Maybe he suffers a devastating injury, that's a less likely
outcome than him either plateauing or even taking another step forward.
(13:22):
And I know people want to see more from him
in the run game, and obviously the defensive line is
helping him get some good pass rush looks. Even still,
you know, like Trey Hendrickson has some flaws. He doesn't
really play the run in his own right. He is
a little bit of a designated pass rusher for the Bengals,
even in his own right in the way they deploy him.
(13:43):
And yet he is going to make thirty thirty five
million dollars. If you are a certain level of productive,
it doesn't matter. You know, you are going to make
that high end level of money. And also your team's
just not going to want to let you go. I
would be very surprised again, unless Benito totally craters that
the bron goes let him walk. You know, teams aren't
letting these quality players walk anymore. Look at DJ Jones.
(14:06):
Everyone thought he was gonna be on He's still around,
and that's a league wide trend. Because the cap is
so high now you can keep everyone you want to keep.
The Broncos are going to want to keep a Nido
and unless again, he really takes a step back, it's
only going to be another strong season of him in
a starting role. And that's the reason he's cheap right now,
(14:28):
is because he only has one season. If he compounds that.
Now he goes, hey, look I've proven it for two
years now and the third year three years back, I
was the best player on a person at basis.
Speaker 2 (14:39):
You just gave me a smaller role. I am that dude.
Speaker 1 (14:42):
You need to pay me thirty thirty five forty million
dollars a year. Right now, it's probably twenty to twenty
five million. And again, maybe playing it out with Benito
saves the Broncos money in the long run. It could,
but it's far more likely it costs them money. There's
way more examples around the WEA looked at Eagles entire
(15:03):
roster of the benefits of doing this thing early, the
signing players early, and the downsides of doing it late.
Look at the Bengals, look at the Cowboys, right, it
just again, sometimes it goes wrong. But also when you
look at the front office and this coaching staff's unwillingness
to fall for the sunk cost fallacy when they've had
(15:25):
a deal go bad, they've moved off it pretty quick.
I just think this organization should have the faith to
make these gambles. And then the Zach Allen one's more simplistic.
I mean, this guy's an unreal player, the keystone of
the defense outside certan one of the four or five
most important players on the roster, maybe even top three
(15:45):
most important players on the roster.
Speaker 2 (15:48):
Just get it done.
Speaker 1 (15:49):
You know, the interior d lineman market is only going
to keep climbing. He's still a little underrated. If he
breaks out and has another all Pro season this year,
that's another guy who could be pushing thirty five to
forty million dollars a year, And at that point you
probably can't afford both. If you get on it now,
maybe the Broncos can manage to keep both, and I
that's just a game changing element for them. Those are
(16:13):
the big Broncos stories of the last couple of days.
But stick around because after the break we will be
getting into the biggest happenings from training camp. Who's shining,
what are those rookies looking like? How's Bo Nick's playing?
Speaker 2 (16:26):
Is John A.
Speaker 1 (16:26):
Barn the future of the defense? All that and more
coming up on Broncos Country Tonight, Training Camp post Rockies
Late Night, Broncos Country to Night. Once again, it's Zach
(16:47):
Seers here tonight as your fill in host. In the
last segment, we win over. Now that we have all
the details of the Drew Sanders Alex Singleton situations, the
Cortland Sutton contract went into the finer details of that.
Make sure you're checking out that on the KOA website,
iHeart Radio app or wherever you listen to podcasts. But
(17:10):
now let's look at the biggest happenings from training camp
over these past couple days. Weren't really able to get
into that yesterday with the Rockies game, so we'll catch
you all up now for starters, I think b Nicks
the past couple of days up and down. Yesterday was
bo Nix's worst day of training camp I've seen so far.
(17:32):
His accuracy just wasn't quite dialed in. He definitely sailed
some passes over some receivers, a deep ball to tap.
Brian in particular sticks out, just didn't quite have it.
I don't know that wasn't quite dialed in yesterday. Today,
I think he looked a lot better on that front,
but had a couple hiccups in terms of just finding
(17:55):
open targets. And now in his defense, I don't think
the targets really were there. But you typically don't want
to see guys scrambling and you know, scrambling for yardage
and training camp just because you're not going to tackle
or even touch the quarterback.
Speaker 2 (18:10):
So those are those are kind of free yards.
Speaker 1 (18:12):
It's not you want to try and work through the
passing game stuff as much as possible rather than bail
out with those scrambles. That's something Russell Wilson would do. Actually,
a lot at Broncos camp is sit back, kind of
pet the ball, hold it, hold it, hold it, and
in a real game at v a sec but he
holds in and he's like, oh, I've actually scrambled for
twenty yards. You know. The bo had a couple of those, which,
(18:35):
again not ideal. Not the end of the world either
on him. I will say he looked incredibly nimble.
Speaker 2 (18:42):
The wheels are are there.
Speaker 1 (18:44):
You know, obviously he was a little beat up last
year with the back issue and everything, so again, great
to just see him moving well and that that's still
a dynamic part of the offense that defenses are going
to have to respect this year. I will say I
think today was overall stronger from Bonnick. I want to
see him go against some other defenses. You know, maybe
(19:04):
we get through the preseason and we're starting to feel
very worried about the Broncos offense just because oh, it's
looked rough through training camp and now it's rough through
the preseason. This defense just looks so elite. I don't
know what the offense is supposed to do with. The
pass rush is consistently winning, the secondary is locking everyone down,
and we know this defense is loaded with talent, so
(19:27):
I'm not I'm assuming it's because of that defensive talent
and not because the offense has some real glaring holes. Now.
Speaker 2 (19:35):
It could be a bit of that.
Speaker 1 (19:36):
Maybe the receivers are struggling to separate where the line
won't hold up.
Speaker 2 (19:39):
But given what we know about even the.
Speaker 1 (19:41):
Receivers last season and the line last season, I don't
think those problems are as severe as it might look
in camp right now simply because they're having to go
up against an elite defense and that applies to Bow
as well. But I think you are still seeing some
promising aspects of Bo in terms of just his master
(20:03):
and control of the offense. A lot of things I
hit on on here on Friday and on Monday was
how much more controlled and intentional he was with his
decisions today. One thing that really stood out to me
was his pre snap operation. And I think just again
seeing these finer details of the position, these more veteran
aspects of these position come into Bo Nicks's game, is.
Speaker 2 (20:29):
Very promising for Broncos Country. Today. Bo was at the line.
Speaker 1 (20:35):
You know, this is in the team period, and he's
running his cadence. He's getting the defense to jump, maybe
not even so much that it would be a penalty,
but enough that he's determining where the pressure is coming from,
what the pressure package is. And then something that I
thought was very key, he's adjusting the protection afterwards. He
(20:56):
might even be audibling the play. You know, we can't
make out the calls, nor do we necessarily know all
the calls in the Seanpaygnon offense from the media angle, but.
Speaker 2 (21:05):
You do hear him.
Speaker 1 (21:08):
Making one, doing the cadence, getting the defense to jump,
recognizing it, pointing it out to the rest of the offense,
and making some sort of verbal adjustment after the fact.
And that's not stuff he was doing with any sort
of regularity last season, or that really any rookie's doing
with any sort of regularity at the quarterback position. If
(21:32):
he can get that element down of this complex offense
in year two, again, it's just that the sky could
be tremendously high for this offense, and Nix's a lot
of that. The receiving corps also is starting to get
me very excited. I think a lot of people in
Bronco's country wanted to see them do a little bit
more at receiver add you know, maybe a first round
(21:56):
pick at the position, or make it even more serious
investment than what they ultimately wound up doing.
Speaker 2 (22:04):
That said, I think this receiver group looks very, very exciting.
Speaker 1 (22:09):
Of course, there's Sudden leading the way, but the receivers
behind him have really really impressed me. All Camplong, I
think Marvin Mims is having an impressive camp. He's lining
up all over the place, which I think is really
important because one thing that hasn't been talked about enough
this offseason is so much of Marvin Mims' breakout last
season came from the slot. He struggled early on in
(22:33):
the year when they were asking him to do a
lot more of the outside stuff. Once they moved him
into the slot, he finally caught his stride that and
they also peared down their asks of him. They really
simplified things. It was a lot more you know, gadgety
stuff as some designed touches for Marvin Mims. Which, hey,
if that's what he is in the offense, that's fine,
(22:54):
you can find a role for that. But one would
hope he can develop past that and you can keep
that arrow in your quiver. But he can also be
a well rounded, you know, every down receiver. On top
of that, in training camp, you are seeing signs of that,
not only in terms of his alignment and him you know,
being moved around the offense more, but in terms of
(23:15):
what he's being asked to do his routes. He's running
a more diverse assortment of routes. He's running more complex
routes instead of just you know, the bubbles and smoke screens.
And end rounds we saw so much of last year
and those are still there, but you're seeing again a
more diverse deployment of Marvin Mims and that's huge because
(23:37):
it'll keep defenses honest and everyone knows how dynamic Marvin
Mims can be. You know, he'd be at a couple
massive field flipping deep touchdowns last year. And then also
just as a ball carrier, you know, a multiple time
All Pro pund returner for a reason.
Speaker 2 (23:53):
The thing is just how can we.
Speaker 1 (23:57):
Find a way, you know, if you're a Lebronco coaching staff,
how can we find a way to get this guy
the ball in you know, more standard situations where we
aren't having to drop these gadgety plays for them. And
I really think there's some promising signs for that in
this training camp.
Speaker 2 (24:13):
Valay also, you know, and we.
Speaker 1 (24:16):
Saw a lot of that last year already, but he's
being used in a diverse set of ways. Sudden is
being used in a wide ranging set of ways, and
it's just that way top to bottom with the top
six in this receiver room, you know, and it's not
just the top guys. I think the less established options
(24:38):
are extremely promising in their own right. Trent Sherfield has
kind of been the forgotten man in the receiver room
by so much of Broncos country, and I think Ryan
Edwards has done a great job highlighting this the past
couple of days. He's been an ace on special teams
for them in those elements of practice, but he's also
having some great receiver reps. He's one of the better
(25:01):
blocking receivers on the team right away. We all know
that matters to Sean Payton and probably means he will
have a meaningful offensive role this season.
Speaker 2 (25:09):
And he's had some big wins. You know, during the.
Speaker 1 (25:14):
One on one period he got matched up with jqm
Ran a little hitch and go and torched him, I
mean five to ten plus yards of separation, a waltzed
on into the end zone for a really easy score.
And just all throughout practice he's making plays as a receiver.
I think he looks like a great kind of trusty
(25:36):
veteran option, a floor raising option for the rest of
the room where you have so many unproven younger pieces,
and a lot of them are exciting, but it's a
projection for a lot of these pieces where Trent Sherfield,
even if maybe a lower ceiling is established, a higher
floor has also been established by him, and you know
(25:56):
you can just rely on him to perform a variety
of different roles in the offense and he can come
through for you. I think he is going to surprise
Bronco's country, not only with his impact on special teams
and being a special team's ace, but ultimately being a
really impactful receiver as well.
Speaker 2 (26:17):
Pat Bryant.
Speaker 1 (26:18):
I want to touch on Pat Bryant because I've seen
some heat on Broncos Twitter about Pat Bryant being a
very limited player in terms of his movement from fans
in the bleachers saying he's looking slow out there, and
I just haven't seen that. You know, he tested I
(26:39):
think a four or five forty or something like that.
You know, he's not a speed demon. He's not Marvin
Mims out there or anything. But I also don't think
he looks slow or it looks like speed is a
problem for him. I think one thing that's really impressive
to me with Pat Bryant is he's already a very
(26:59):
vet or in route runner. He's lost his cleats a
couple of times, but his cuts have been incredibly crisp,
well detailed on his routes.
Speaker 2 (27:10):
He's running a.
Speaker 1 (27:13):
He using the word diverse, but a varied route tree,
I guess you'd say. And then also just has great
feel for where to settle in the soft spots of
the defense when he's going up against his zone coverage.
He knows how to create separation no matter the coverage
he's facing. And then you can also really win at
the catch point, you know. I think the crazy thing
(27:35):
is he's having a good camp. I think he might
be wide receiver six because Sherfield's looking amazing. And Troy Franklin,
I mean Troy Franklin has maybe been the best player
at Bronco's training camp this this go around.
Speaker 2 (27:50):
I just he again in one on ones.
Speaker 1 (27:55):
He he absolutely whooped up on Mathis Baron had great
reps against them. Pat Bryant, by the way, had a
great route against Riley Moss, which was impressive to see.
It was a really great day for the receivers, and
you expect that in these one on one drills, but
still it was absolutely something you love to see today,
(28:19):
especially with Franklin. Just he doesn't just look improved, he
looks like a different player. His hands have been nothing
but reliable in camp again. I don't know if I've
seen a single one of his targets fall incomplete. And
he's just a much more physical presence. You notice at
(28:40):
the moment you see him on the field, he looks bigger,
he's more filled out his frame, and it plays on
the field. He's getting by cornerbacks and fighting off physical
coverage a lot easier than he did last year. When
there is traffic at the catchpoint or contact at the catchpoint,
he's able to fight through it in a way he
just was last year. And I keep getting more and
(29:04):
more confident about Troy Franklin because it's not just a
one day thing or a two day thing.
Speaker 2 (29:10):
Every single day I've.
Speaker 1 (29:11):
Been to training camps so far, and from what I've heard,
even the days I haven't been there, Troy Franklin has
been a beast. I would not be surprised at all
just where we stand today. I would not be surprised,
to add all, if Troy Franklin is the number two
receiver on this team in twenty twenty five, and if
(29:32):
you told me that a month ago, I would have
thought you were crazy. I thought Franklin was absolutely the
number six and maybe even going to get cut now.
I don't know if i'd pick him to be the
number two, but I don't think he's that far behind
Mims er Valet. I think all three of those guys
(29:52):
are in a similar tier in terms of likelihood of
who ends up becoming the number two receiver. Now, I
think a wide receiver that is going to be the
number two pass catcher, and maybe even a running back
ends up beating out one of those other receivers. But
between Mims and frank I really don't know. I think
either of them could have such big rules. It's not
(30:13):
just the deep stuff.
Speaker 2 (30:14):
With Franklin. You're seeing him view used in a more
varied set of ways.
Speaker 1 (30:20):
You're seeing him deployed in some ways we saw Marvin
Mims deployed last year. And with his incredible speed and
now having a little more physicality to his body, he's
looked great. R J. Harvey going to running backs now,
I think the running backs have looked strong these past
few days. R J. Harvey's giving Dobbins a run for
his money. I think Dobbin's vision looks amazing. RJ.
Speaker 2 (30:42):
Harvey so explosive.
Speaker 1 (30:44):
And those are just elements you haven't seen from the
Broncos backfield, especially last season. It was really lacking last season.
I think it's going to be back in twenty twenty
five and that's very exciting.
Speaker 2 (30:56):
Sean Payton was gushing about R. J.
Speaker 1 (30:58):
Harvey today, talked about how he's just been fantastic throughout camp,
even said he liked what he'd see from him in
pass protection, which I think is notable because Harvey did
have a pretty visible or I don't know, noticeable pass
protection blunder today where he got blown up by Jonathan Cooper.
But hearing Sean Payton compliment his pass protection skills I
(31:21):
thought was notable because Payton doesn't just throw around compliments easily.
So great to hear that Harvey's impressing on that front
because that's going to be so important to what type
of playing time he gets. And I did have more
offensive notes today, it was harder to make out some
of the coverage stuff. One thing that really did stand
out to me on defense today John A. Baron.
Speaker 2 (31:46):
Really the last two days, John A.
Speaker 1 (31:47):
Barron has been really really great out there at Broncos camp.
I think the physicality he's demonstrated has been so impressive.
He's always around the ball, always making contact. When we're
seeing some of the run plays, he's getting right into
the thick of the mess and he's setting that edge
(32:10):
or helping set the edge, you know, from that corner spot,
and oftentimes you know you're creating a little bit of
a pile up or a traffic jam and helping to
slow down the run for a minimal game gain or
even stop it in the backfield.
Speaker 2 (32:25):
I think you love to see that from a corner,
especially a first round corner.
Speaker 1 (32:31):
You know, he's i think, being an elite player at
that position, a lot of guys aren't necessarily down to
do the dirty work and get their hands dirty stains
more than willing and John A.
Speaker 2 (32:44):
Barron looks cut from the same cloth in that regard.
You're seeing him used all over the defense.
Speaker 1 (32:50):
Wherever he lines up. He looks really natural. I think
his instincts just jump off the field. You see him again,
naturally flowing to the ball all the time, making good
breaks on routes to you know, always be around the
catch point, and he's you know, you're not lighting guys up,
but he's consistently putting himself in position to make a
(33:13):
quick tackle or deliver a big hit. We're not seeing
those at this point in practice. We need to see
how it translates to games when he's actually starting to
hit these guys, but he's consistently putting himself in an
excellent position, the coverage looks great. And then when he's
kind of a similar element to what I was just
highlighting with him being willing to get his nose dirty
(33:36):
against the run. He's doing everything on special teams and
when he is, he looks great there. He's been an
awesome gunner during the special teams periods. So I just
however they deploy him, and I don't know how it'll be.
I think it's probably as the starting nickel. However they
end up deploying them, though, I think you have to
(33:57):
have a lot of confidence in what he can bring
to the defense, even as a rookie, just because of
what he's shown so far. We've got a lot more
Broncos happenings to talk about once we get back here.
You're listening to Broncos Country tonight on KOA
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